Journalism Program

Journalism minors spend two semesters of on-campus practicum in at least one of the organizations listed below.

Chips: the campus newspaper. Students write, edit, or help run the college’s student newspaper.

KWLC: the college radio station. Students take part in programming or production at the campus radio station.

Visual Media: the college’s photo and media bureau. Students work in photography or videography for the college’s Department of Visual Media.

Elizabeth Stay

When: Spring 2016
Where: Susan Davis International, Washington, D.C.
Major: Communication Studies

Elizabeth spent a semester at Susan Davis International in Washington, D.C. As a public relations intern, she helped draft press releases and brainstorm public relation plan ideas, among other tasks. To complete these tasks, Elizabeth found that many skills such as interpersonal communication and articulate writing were essential to her internship. Elizabeth was able to use the skills she learned in her classes at Luther to help her succeed. One of the most important skills she developed was how to accept and grow from her flaws. Despite the challenges she faced, Elizabeth was able to embrace and overcome them. Most rewarding to Elizabeth was how much she had grown over the course of the semester. This growth mindset is what she will continue to apply towards her career field.

Hannah Mick

When: January 2016
Where: KWWL News Channel 7, Waterloo, IA
Major: Communication Studies

KWWL News Channel 7 is a news channel based in Waterloo, Iowa. Hannah had the opportunity to intern there where she observed and worked with the producers, photojournalists, journalists, and reporters. She gained hands-on experience writing the news, shooting and editing video, interviewing, and creating news packages. She realized that it takes a lot to physically produce the news, and that broadcasting news is more like a team sport. Everyone was positive and worked together to create something meaningful and important. Hannah knows that she chose the right major and minor to study because she was able to apply so many of the things she learned from various classes during this internship. Not only did she learn that coffee will be an essential beverage in her future, but found that working in the TV news business is what she wants to do with the rest of her life, which is extremely important.

Paige Lobdell

When: January 2015
Where: iHeart Media
Major: Communication Studies

Last January, Paige worked for the iHeartMedia company in Minneapolis and specifically under the KFAN Sports Radio. This station covers Minnesota professional and collegiate athletics with four shows throughout the day, hosted by a variety of radio figures. At KFAN, Paige worked at the shows, such as the “Paul Allen Show,” and was in charge of greeting guests, answering fan call-ins, running prize giveaways, and setting up interviews. She also learned how to use editing software to cut audio clips and set each of them up for podcasting. In her spare time, Paige would sit in a recording studio and practice creating her own show. At the end of her internship, Paige was sent to the University of Minnesota to sit in on basketball or hockey press conferences and record the audio for future shows. Throughout her experience, Paige is most proud of her time on-air. She loved reading the vibes of the conversations and is proud to have both Paul Allen and Ben Leber compliment her voice and mention she has a bright future ahead. This internship gave her complete insight to the media world of radio, allowing her to compare it to other forms of media and decide which might be the right fit in the future.

Graduates who began their work in journalism at Luther have gone on to careers in newspaper, television, and radio, winning awards that include a Pulitzer Prize in reporting. Others work in social media, marketing, public relations, and law.

Read below to learn more about how Luther prepared our alumni for careers in journalism.

Erin Alberty ’01

Pulitzer Prize Winning Reporter, The Salt Lake Tribune

I started working for Chips when I was a sophomore at Luther. For one of my first stories, I had to call a member of the Board of Regents for comment on some financial development. She said she’d need to see the whole story before it ran in the paper. This had not been explicitly discussed at Chips—were we a real newspaper or more of a college newsletter, under the school’s control?—so I called our advisor and asked what to do. He firmly said no, we do not give anyone else a first look at our copy. We discussed this at our next staff meeting. I later learned that after I refused to let the Board of Regents screen my story, the advisor got a phone call from the (unhappy) college president. It was my first lesson in journalistic independence, and also in the importance of having an editor who will back you up.

Mike Danforth ’95

Executive Producer, “Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me!”, National Public Radio

I loved working at KWLC, the student radio station. I co-hosted a show called The Articulate Spine. Senior year I was music director. That’s where I learned to schmooze record company reps on the phone. I didn’t know it at the time, but that was great practice for cold calling publicists to book radio guests.

I’m also grateful for the generous spirit of my professors. Because of them, I learned to be comfortable asking questions. Once I learned to be secure in what I didn’t know, I learned so much. As someone who works with journalists and has done my own reporting, I know the value of listening and asking informed questions.

Michael Grimm ’93

Play-by-Play Voice of the Minnesota Golden Gopher Football and Men’s Basketball Teams

“Outside of my classroom work, the experience that helped me most was my work at KWLC Radio. I began doing play-by-play of basketball games during my first year and added football duties my sophomore year. The hands-on aspect of getting in front of a microphone, learning how to prepare for a game, and understanding the craft of calling a game have been vital to my career. Covering the 1991 and 1992 NCAA Division III Women’s Basketball Tournament still remains one of my career highlights. I estimate during my four-years on campus, I had called nearly 400 games, written more than 500 sports articles, and had a role in 500 news releases.”